Dr. Toews gives the opening address at the FLR celebration event, 2014.
Over a period of four years at York University I taught SOCI2060: Social Interaction and Community. The perspective of symbolic interactionism that I emphasize is founded on the idea that your identities (mother, partner, worker etc.) are rooted in the importance to you of how others see you as you progress through your life course. In contrast to your various identities which are in flux and may at times conflict with each other, your sense of self is a feature of your psychology that works to integrate, adapt, and sometimes resist your identities: as for example when you experience stigma and wish to hide an aspect of your biography. What a concept ripe for applying to today’s world of social media! My students and I discuss how Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and all sorts of social media sites create resources for interacting that influence how we are sociable and unsociable with each other, and their consequences for the self and identity.
The Falling in Love with Research event at York University is an event created by undergraduate students on their own time, and was inspired by SOCI2060. For more information, go to:
Click to access FallinginLovewithResearchCelebrationEvent.pdf
David Toews PhD 